Kindred Spirits
by PD31
Summary: Set in the universes of my "iAm Done" and "I've Missed You" stories. Two kindred spirits meet unexpectedly; both need a real friend, neither would object to something more...
1. Chapter 1

Kindred Spirits

By PD31  
Disclaimer: I _still _don't own iCarly, Victorious, any of the episodes or any of the characters.  
Rating: T  
Pairing: Jedi (Freddie/Jade)  
Summary: Set in the universes of my "iAm Done" and "I've Missed You" stories. A huge thank you to One Horse Shay for helping me attempt to integrate the timelines of the two shows; for the purpose of this story the events of both the Full Moon Jam in "I've Missed You" and the iHalfoween party that spawned "iAm Done" took place on May 4th, one week before this story begins.

**AN: Hello everyone and Happy New Year. Please enjoy this story. I would also like to thank everyone who reviewed the semi-prequel (I've Missed You over in the Victorious section) so "Guest", Happyjade25, "BadeCabbie167", Prentiss-be-mine, One Horse Shay, anlmoon, "someone", "Angeline" and "Jeremy Shane" – thank you all.**

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_Benson Residence,_

_Apartment 8-D, Bushwell Plaza, Seattle, WA_

_Friday May 11__th__, 2012_

A still-angry Freddie Benson woke early on Friday morning; he was still angry whenever he thought about Carly, Sam and the others over their indifference during the "Halfoween" party they had thrown. He checked his clock and groaned; 5 a.m. His mother must have just returned from a shift at the hospital and that was what had woken him up. He closed his eyes again, thinking that he needed some more sleep before heading to school.

"_Why though?_" Part of his brain flared up. "_So you can have another day of the two girls chasing you round and round Ridgeway trying to brow-beat you into hanging with them again?_"

It had been a difficult week for him; at first he had tried ignoring the girls after confronting them on the Monday about their behaviour during the party. By the middle of the week their (Carly's, anyway) apologies had turned into arguments and complaints about how he "can't stay mad at them forever". _Watch me_, the brown-haired teen thought grimly as he rolled over in bed and smiled, any time he thought about life without the girls, without _iCarly_, without Gibby, Spencer and his entire "old life" in Seattle he felt better; the time he had spent looking at new clubs and new interests away from them all had made him feel liberated. He thought about the coming weekend; his hours were still to be confirmed at the Pear Store, having just been interviewed and hired during the week, so he wouldn't have any work there to do just yet. Were the girls still expecting him to do iCarly with them tonight? Surely not, _but if they are then they are in for an unpleasant surprise_ he thought. His mother was on nights all weekend so he wouldn't see much of her.

"_I'm on top with my studies, nobody will care if I blow off a day._"

He smiled and thought back a few months to when he made a surprise trip down to see Tori Vega and the others at Hollywood Arts and attended her play. He winced slightly at the memory of her sister Trina swinging around the place after having a problem with her harness, but the elder Vega hadn't been seriously hurt and everything had turned out ok in the end.

"_Why not have another long weekend in LA with some people who actually like me?_"

His own spontaneity surprised him but the idea was growing on him by the second so he leapt out of bed and logged onto his laptop. A 6 a.m. flight, then another at 6:40 if he missed the first. The boy dressed quickly and threw some changes of clothes and overnight things into a small bag, along with his phone and laptop before scribbling a quick note for his mother and heading down to his car; he was on the road just after 5:10 and, with the I-5 still fairly light, arrived at the airport a little after 5:30. He was able to buy a ticket for the 6 a.m. flight and made the gate with a few minutes to spare.

The flight was on time and he and the other passengers disembarked shortly after 8:30. Not needing to collect any checked baggage he was able to quickly leave the airport and get a shuttle bus to downtown LA (he realised there was no point heading straight to Hollywood Arts as school would have started by the time he got there). The boy realised he had no accommodation booked and, having turned up on spec he couldn't really expect any of the gang to suddenly take him in so he spent the bus ride checking out hotel prices for the weekend. He held off on booking though, just in case he did get a generous offer from one of his friends.

_West Residence,_

_Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA_

Jade had woken early this morning as well. She sighed at another Los Angeles morning; the bright sun did little to enhance her mood as she reflected on the events of the last week. The Full Moon Jam and the spectacular way she had rejected her ex-boyfriend's attempts at reconciliation had been fun at the time, and she had enjoyed her date the following night (albeit the guy seemed a little nervous around her for most of the evening). She had enjoyed singing at Karaoke Dokie and her date had been impressed anew by her voice. He seemed to have had a decent enough time but hadn't asked about a second date. Not at all, neither on the night nor when she'd seen him around school during the week.

It had been a quiet, almost lonely week for the gothic girl. That something was wrong became painfully apparent early on Monday morning when Beck, still limping slightly, arrived with André and Robbie. The three boys walked past her and their usual table in the Asphalt Café and chose a different one. The Vega sisters joined them (she wasn't too unhappy about that) but then so did Cat, having first asked why Jade was sat on her own.

"I was sat here, they showed up and sat there. Then Vega and her sister arrived and joined them."

"Oh, ok," Cat answered before walking to the others and sitting with them. The thought that even _Cat_ wasn't going to sit with her was a bit of an annoyance. Sinjin and Burf _tried_ to join her but she advised them not to and they fled shortly afterwards. She thought Sinjin may have peed – again; it was the one thing all week that made her genuinely smile.

The pattern repeated at lunch and throughout the next three days; she sat alone while the others were together at another table. As cool as she tried to appear on the outside, it was starting to get to her that they had _all_ taken his side so readily.

So when lunchtime came around and she bought her burrito from the Grub Truck, it was with the anticipation of another silent lunch hour that she sat alone, out of the way of and a couple of tables along from her "friends".

After a couple of hours in downtown LA browsing a few stores (particularly the Pear Store) Freddie caught a cab to Hollywood Arts. He wasn't at all surprised to have received a slew of missed calls and text messages from Carly during his flight down. His mother called, rather unhappy with him, mid-morning; it was the one call he did take and she was upset that he was missing school. His attempts to placate her with his reasoning were only partially successful but he declined her demand that he "come home right now", instead saying he'd be back Sunday – or maybe Monday… or later. The threat of a prolonged stay drew a steadying breath from the Benson matriarch and a far more civil request to be home on the Sunday.

"I'll think about it," he said with a smirk before ringing off. He was sorely tempted to switch the device back off as he declined a couple more calls from the brunette web star (who, consequently, now realised that his phone was on) but had one message to send first; he texted Tori, she was the one he'd had most contact with since meeting the group the previous year after all, and casually mentioned in it that he was in LA and would be at Hollywood Arts over lunch.

He arrived at the Performing Arts school and paid the driver. He had timed the trip well as the outdoor café was beginning to fill with hungry students. Realising that _he_ fell into that category, and still yet to switch his phone back on to see if there was a reply from the younger, more talented Vega sister (he turned it off in annoyance after declining Carly's _fifth_ call in a two minute period) he, against his better judgement, bought something from the Grub Truck, eyeing the ravioli with deep misgivings as he received it, before turning to scan the area for some friendly faces.

It didn't take him long to spot the knot of students he had first met at Kenan's house, sat together talking – none were looking in his direction so he assumed they had yet to spy him. His eyes, though, were drawn to a different table; to a pretty girl sat on her own with her back to them (and therefore she would have been just about facing him if she wasn't so interested in her own meal).

"No!" she snapped, without looking up as he sat down next to her, so his own back was to the group as well. He ignored her and continued to look at her; just the faintest hint of sadness could be seen under the impassive mask she wore so well. She raised her head in annoyance that someone dared to challenge her and he smiled at the death glare that so reminded him of another girl's before recognition kicked in and her expression morphed in an instant into one of surprise and – almost – happiness. She even spared him a ghost of a smile.

"Freddie Benson! What are you doing here?" The dark brunette didn't even attempt to hide her shock and she swept her hair, including her dark blue and green extensions, away from her face, realising as she did that she was in danger of indulging in the "flirtatious hair flipping" she accused her rival of doing so often. _I am not flirting with him_, she instantly corrected herself sternly, _my hair was just in my face_.

"Long weekend to visit some friends," he smiled. He dropped it a moment later and his tone turned serious. "Why are you sat on your own?"

"Well, Beck and I broke up…" she began. He nodded, though with a hint of confusion.

"I thought that was a few weeks ago, and that you were still friends and hanging together," he interrupted, something that earned him a fresh glare of annoyance from the mean girl. She smiled internally though, happy to have the opportunity to reclaim complete control over her features and the situation.

"We did, to both," she explained, "until last weekend; it was the 'Full Moon Jam' here and I was singing. Beck liked what he'd heard and out of the blue, after chasing after Tori and a litany of other bimbos," she saw Freddie frown a little at her grouping her classmate in with the others like that, "he decided he wanted me back. I asked him if he wanted me back when he was chasing Tori, trying to kiss her, talking me down to her, calling me a freak to one of his friends or receiving endless text messages from some girl."

"What did he say to that?" Freddie pressed.

"Nothing, I stormed off the stage after that and asked the backstage guys if any of them wanted to take me out somewhere. They seemed a bit nervous but one eventually said he would and we went out the next night; it was ok but he hasn't asked about a second date."

"So you've been abandoned by them because you rejected him?" Freddie glanced over at the other group, still talking among themselves. None met his eyes; he still doubted that they had even realised yet that he was there.

"Uh no, they ostracised me because he tried to kiss me and when I turned him down I uh… kneed him in the groin," she clarified. The tech producer was unable to tell whether it was shame or pride that he could detect a trace of in her otherwise even tone; he suspected the latter.

He whistled softly. "And you wonder why the guys are nervous about going out with you."

"I never said I was wondering," she countered with a light smirk, "just that they were. So anyway, come on, tell me about you. I don't see Carly or Sam, where are they?"

"Seattle I imagine," he shrugged; she noticed a momentary flare of anger in his eyes when she named the pair. She expected him to elaborate but he returned to his lunch.

"You can't just give me that," she demanded, giving him her best stare again. "What happened? Why are you here and they're up there?"

He sighed again. "We threw a party last week. Some guys were in one of our local hang-out places, the 'Groovy Smoothie' and they were going to a costume party. The girls decided they wanted to throw one but didn't want to wait for Halloween, so – as it's six months away – we had a 'Halfoween' party instead."

The girl nodded. "I remember you mentioning it on i… the show," she corrected seeing the look in his eyes and assuming he didn't want the brunette web hostess's name being mentioned again. He smiled at her and continued,

"Yeah so we had the party and… an uninvited guest showed up and started messing with us. The girls thought they'd caught him and gave out a slamming into some gift pool we'd rigged up. What the idiots didn't realise was that he and his goons had forced _me_ into the costume first. After the fact not one of them cared or wanted to know if I was ok; they even apologised to _him_ for something that had gone on a while earlier, can you believe that? So I finally realised that I don't have one decent friend I can count upon in that group and I've told them all that I'm done with them."

"I know _that_ feeling," she commented darkly.

"Oh my God, FREDDIE!" He turned his head at Tori's greeting as the half-Latina dashed to appear by his side; she had finally realised that someone was sat with Jade and recognised her friend from behind. "I got your text but I didn't realise you were here already, did you get mine? How are you?" she babbled, pulling him up and into a hug, much to his dark brunette neighbour's annoyance.

"I'm good Tori, how are you?" he asked her with a huge smile. At the other table he could see from the corner of his eyes that the others were looking over in surprise as recognition and realisation hit them.

"We'll make some extra space on our table," she announced before heading back; neither teenager left behind was sure if the invite was for one or two.

"Go on," Jade encouraged dismissively as he sat again, "your _friends_ want you to sit with them," she continued bitterly.

The boy looked at her for a moment; he was isolated from his former friends by choice, she by force and he sympathised with the feeling of loneliness that even she failed to hide. "I want to sit here with you," he countered confidently.

"Why? You're not obligated to stay with me; I don't need a babysitter Freddie."

"Do you _want_ me to go?" he challenged her, holding her gaze and surprising her with his refusal to be cowed or intimidated by her.

"I don't want you to miss out on spending time with your _friends_." She tried and failed to keep the bitterness out of her voice.

"That's not what I asked," he pointed out. "And I'm _with_ a friend," he finished, as their eyes met – _really_ met, both teenagers felt a strange sense of kinship that neither had experienced before. The Seattleite was stunned and almost overwhelmed by the desire, the sudden _need_ to kiss her but the spell was broken as quickly as it began by Cat bouncing to the table, Tori hot on her heels and with her sandwich in hand.

"Hi," the ebullient redhead called out, pouncing on him and giving him a welcoming hug, one that he was happy to return.

"Hey Cat, how are you?" he asked the giggly girl with a laugh of his own.

"Come on, come sit with us," Tori urged, glancing from the former iCarly to his lunchmate.

"I'm not exactly _welcome_ in your little group these days am I? Not after how I turned Beck down," she was amused when Tori's face fell as she had to concede the point.

The younger Vega sister cast a hesitant eye back at the others before making her way around the table to sit opposite the pair; Cat slid in between her and Freddie, much to the kindred pair's surprise.

Freddie chanced a glance over his shoulder to see the reaction of the rest of the group; André was staring at them in more than a little confusion but he quickly focussed on a more surprising sight – Trina was sat in Beck's lap with her right arm around him and her body blocked the long haired actor's face from his line of sight.

"Beck and your sister?" he asked Tori in surprise. She peered around him to take in the sight before groaning and resting her forehead on the table as she uttered the word "Trina" in unconcealed frustration. Jade smirked at her reaction.

The Hollywood Arts bell rang and the three students rose. "We have Sikowitz now," Tori noted. "See you after?"

Freddie nodded and stood up too. "I'll see you girls later," he promised.

He watched Tori and Cat leave the table but was surprised that Jade remained stood by his side.

"You don't have class?" he asked her.

"Shouldn't _you_ be in class?" she shot lightly back at him.

"You gonna rat me out?" he laughed.

"No, I'm gonna blow off class too. C'mon," she grabbed his wrist and led him to the car park, ignoring the surprised stares of her former friendship group as they watched the two go.

"Where are we going?" he asked as they arrived at her car.

"For coffee," she answered simply.

_Groundwork Coffee_

_1501 North Cahuenga Boulevard, Hollywood, CA_

Freddie brought two steaming mugs of coffee to the table he and Jade were sharing. He smiled over the rim of his mug as he saw her begin to suck down her beverage, amused at the way she closed her eyes and sat with a dreamy expression as she savoured the bitter-sweet liquid.

"You love your coffee," he observed playfully.

"Oh yeah."

"Jade, why were you so eager to blow off class to be with me?" he asked her curiously. "I mean, don't get me wrong, it's great to hang with you but it's not like we know each other _that_ well."

"If you didn't want to be with me you should have said something," she snarled irritably.

"I never said _that_," he defended, "just that I'm surprised you wanted to go."

"I dunno," she muttered as she pondered the scenario, "I guess I just…" she sighed as she deliberated how much to disclose. Finally she decided that she could, and would, tell him everything. "Even the mean girl gets sick of being on her own after a while. This last week has been difficult since all my 'friends' sided with Beck over me so to have someone who actually wanted to hang with me and wasn't a loser," she shook her head at the thought of Sinjin and Burf, "it's nice," she admitted quietly.

"I had the opposite problem," he sighed. "Ever since I told Carly where to shove it she's been trying to corner me at every opportunity and demand another chance. I think she's already had plenty," he told his cup sadly before taking another sip.

"You live right across the hall from her though, don't you? It can't be easy to keep avoiding her."

"That's what she's counting on," he complained. "She expects to wear me down eventually, that all will be forgiven and everything will go back to normal. She can forget that," he snorted out.

"You'll really stay mad at her forever?"

"I'm going to try."

"So one of us has lost our former friends and the other can't get rid of them?" She laughed at the situation they found themselves in.

"That sums it up," he began laughing along with her. "You could get yours back though," he noted, "whatever the reason, Tori and Cat were happy to sit with you today."

"They won't do that on Monday though, they were sitting with _you_ not me." A thought struck the gothic girl. "Do you need me to take you back to school? I guess you and Tori have plans for tonight?"

"No," he admitted, "I kinda just came down here and figured I'd meet you all and we'd make plans on the spot. I have nothing to do tonight – apart from find a hotel."

"I can find you a bed," she offered.

"Oh I wasn't…" he began before she cut him off.

"We've _plenty _of room," she insisted. "I'll text my mom so she knows but she'll be fine with it. We can hit a couple of places tonight and have some fun… unless you'd rather go with the others – I don't wanna keep you from spending time with them."

"What did you have in mind?"

"Maybe dinner and some karaoke?"

"Karaoke with you guys was fun last time."

"How about you invite the others then, they may be more receptive than if it comes from me, and we'll head to Karaoke Dokie for around 8?"

He nodded eagerly and mass-texted the others to gauge their interest.

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**AN: Thank you for reading; I hope the next chapter, featuring how they spend their evening – and who else shows up, will be up soon. It depends on how quickly I get some of my other work (particularly iSwitch Schools in the Victorious section) finished. PD.**


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Hello again everyone and welcome to the second chapter of this story. I hope you've all had a pleasant week and weekend. My thanks as always go to everyone who read, and especially those who reviewed, Chapter 1 – so Challenge King, EnchantingNightmares, ShadowFires51 and Fanfic-Reader-88, thank you.**

**As ShadowFires51 pointed out, in the interests of clarity, although the story is set in my "iAm Done" story's universe, it's set shortly after the first chapter rather than at the end of it. This Freddie has not met Kimberley.**

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Freddie had fired off a mass text to Tori and the other members of the Hollywood Arts friendship group inviting them to meet him, and Jade, at Karaoke Dokie around 8 p.m. He received affirmative replies from the half-Latina sisters, Cat, André and Robbie. Beck, however, had declined; the long-haired actor was clearly unwilling to spend any time he didn't have to in the company of his gothic ex-girlfriend.

After the pair finished their coffees Jade drove herself and the Seattle-born teenager to her home. Her mother greeted them pleasantly, though she made a barbed comment in the direction of her daughter about having to fix up the guest room at such short notice. Jade grinned guiltily while Freddie thanked the older West female graciously and sincerely for her hospitality.

"How many is that?" Jade smirked as Freddie's phone beeped again.

"Twenty-seven in the last hour," he sighed wearily. "And another three from my mom still complaining about me being down here."

"The bathroom's down the hallway," Mrs West pointed in its direction.

"Thank you, I'll take a shower before we head out," he informed the West girls and began to get settled in.

_Karaoke Dokie_

_Los Feliz, Los Angeles, California_

After freshening up the duo had chatted with Mrs West over a couple of sodas before they headed out at around 7:30 and arrived at the club a little before 8. Jade wore a black and dark blue dress for the evening and had swapped out her green hair extensions for some more dark blue for the night. She secured them a table (she managed to scare away some other patrons eyeing the free table) and the two ordered fresh sodas from a passing waitress as they sat there alone (Freddie persuaded Jade to wait until the others arrived before ordering food).

The Seattleite was a little relieved to find that he could sit here _without_ feeling the urge to kiss the gothic girl that he had felt earlier; not because he didn't still _want_ to and certainly not because he didn't find her attractive – _she's beautiful_ ran continually through his head when he looked at her – but because of how awkward it could make things. The two still didn't really know each other all that well and he felt that if he tried to make some kind of move it would scupper a burgeoning friendship. _Why on earth would she be interested in me_? he thought sadly as he kept his gaze on his drink, something that allowed Jade to steal unusually shy glances at _him_ without getting caught.

"Hey guys," Tori greeted them brightly, resting her left hand on Freddie's left shoulder as she stood on his right hand side. Cat bounced to Jade's side and took a seat, greeting her exuberantly and smiling at the Seattle native from across the table. Trina arrived and pressed herself close to Freddie on his left hand side, earning herself a scowl from the dark brunette sitting opposite. André sat to Tori's right, between her and Jade, leaving Robbie – and Rex – to take the seat between Trina and Cat, much to the elder Vega sister's disgust.

"I have to let you know," the Ventriloquist began nervously as he leaned in to speak to Freddie, "Rex isn't too happy that I got an invite and he didn't."

"Rex is a puppet," Freddie pointed out.

"I am not!" Rex argued, causing the Seattleite to palm his forehead and shake his head; he looked helplessly across at Jade, who merely shrugged.

The waitress who had furnished Freddie and Jade with their drinks returned to take the group's orders; they encouraged Freddie to try the Buffalo nuggets and also ordered fries, nachos and several other items to share along with a round of drinks for the newcomers.

The newcomer to the group was excited when the club's MC announced that acts were being invited to sign up to sing; he was looking forward to hearing his talented friends' voices again so he was surprised when he saw the red-headed Cat's face fall at the news.

"What's the matter?" he asked her.

"Jade and I got banned from singing here because we upset the owner's daughter," she explained sadly.

"I'm signing up anyway," Jade's tone was terse when he turned to her for confirmation or a further explanation. "Come on," she instructed her child-like friend and stood up, seizing her elbow as she did. Cat followed reluctantly a moment later as, far more eagerly did Tori and, to the group's collective horror, Trina. Freddie was confused by their reaction but kept quiet as he didn't know enough about the girl's talent (or lack thereof) to make a judgement. The two boys also signed up to sing and the group urged him to do the same.

"But you guys all do this regularly," he protested, "I'm not a singer."

"Trina has no talent and it didn't stop _her_ from signing up," Jade argued to the older teen's fury. Freddie shrugged, he was torn between keeping the smirk of his face at the girl's irate response to the insult and feeling a little upset at the other girl for making the rather cruel barb. "Come on," she urged _him_ this time, taking his hand and leading him to the sign-up board. Tori stared after them with a slight frown on her face; seeing Jade take his hand had annoyed the lighter brunette girl, whether or not it could be interpreted as a romantic gesture on the gothic girl's part.

_Why? _the singer-actress asked herself as she eyed the pair. _Why does it bother me thinking that something _could_ happen between him and Jade?_ She thought back to the night they first met, when she and Carly Shay found out about being played for three months by the same guy, how they had humiliated Steven live on air and then the group had bonded with the iCarlies during the party – and she had bonded with Freddie a little more than most, standing oh so close to him while Sam Puckett fought her rap battle with Rex and getting rather touchy feely with him. Her next thought was of his trip down for the weekend to see the play she was directing and how they had hung out together for a while in between visiting Trina in hospital as she recovered from the minor injuries that resulted from the damage to her harness. _If Freddie was going to get with _anyone_ at this school_, she realised, _I thought that it would be _me. She sipped her drink and continued to observe the boy and her frienemy making their return to the table, Jade still holding his right hand with her left as they chatted casually.

"So, what are you going to sing?" she asked idly as the pair returned; Jade released his hand and made her way back to her seat on the far side of the table as he slipped back in between the two sisters.

"I have _no_ idea," he muttered. "I'll think of something when I get up there I guess."

"_We_ will," Jade smirked.

"I thought you were singing with Cat," Tori pointed out.

"Nobody said I can't sing twice," she returned.

"Uh, they said you couldn't sing _at all_," Robbie reminded her.

Jade was about to retort that that's actually what they say about _Trina_ but she bit her tongue as their food arrived.

"Good, right?" André asked Freddie, motioning to the nuggets. The former tech producer nodded eagerly as he helped himself to a few more along with a handful of fries.

The group made short work of their food and were soon waiting eagerly (or, in Freddie's case, apprehensively) for the next portion of the evening's entertainment to begin.

"So, Freddie," Tori asked as a thought suddenly struck her, "where are you staying this weekend? I mean, last time you spent the weekend with us… if you don't have a hotel booked for the whole weekend you could do that again if you want?" She smiled sweetly at him while Trina nodded eagerly by his other shoulder.

"It's a kind offer Tori but Jade and her mom have said I can stay at their home this weekend," he informed her.

"Oh. Ok," Tori glanced across the table to meet Jade's self-satisfied smile with a guarded expression of her own. Freddie, who was taking a sip of his soda, missed the girls' non-verbal exchange.

"Who wants another drink?" Freddie asked the friends when he finished his own a few minutes later.

"I'll go with you," Jade offered when the others all decided to accept another soda.

"You know," she told him as casually as she could manage while the two waited at the bar area for their drinks to be served, "if you want to stay with Tori then that's fine… I don't want to deprive you of the chance of her company."

"I'm happy staying with you – unless you're not ok with it anymore." He gave her a cautious, uncertain look.

"Of _course_ it's ok," she assured him.

"Well then, I look forward to enjoying tonight and having some fun for the rest of our weekend," he grinned. She returned it a little shyly, something she wasn't used to. They gathered up the group's drinks and returned with them to their table. As Tori had been called up for her turn to sing while they were gone she slipped into her rivals seat next to him, casually leaning against him as they watched the girl perform on the club's central stage. Because of the position of the table this meant they were now sat with their backs to Trina so they didn't see the elder Vega sister's look of annoyance at how comfortable the pair were beginning to look together.

Tori had elected to sing "The Joke Is On You" and won a huge round of applause from the other patrons at the end of her performance.

"Ok," the MC announced into the microphone, "our next pair is going to be Jade West and Freddie Benson." The friends applauded wildly urging a reluctant Freddie up to the stage. Jade rolled her eyes slightly and grabbed his wrist to guide him out of his seat.

"Hey, you can't sing here," a familiar and unwelcome voice called to Jade; she turned her head exasperatedly but kept hold of Freddie's wrist, remembering Hayley's attempts to hit on Beck, and his allowing her to, a couple of years earlier. "Oh, you're the cute guy from iCarly," she recognised Freddie as he turned to face her and her voice turned at once excited and flirtatious as she smiled, "what are you doing with _that_?" she demanded, throwing a filthy look at Jade. "Ah ah ah," she wagged her finger at the mean girl as she took a step towards me, "my dad owns the joint remember? _One word_ from me and you and your friends are thrown out of here _for good_. Not you, Freddie," she restored her sweet smile as she turned back to him, "_you_ can stay for as long as you like – we've an extra seat at our table," and she motioned to the other side of the club where her friend Tara sat. The boy looked over and the girl waved to him.

He ignored the invite, and the two girls glaring at one another. So, why can't _we _sing?" He emphasised the "we" and raised the arm Jade continues to hold, gesturing towards the blonde with it. He had, of course, been told the story of the girls' first visit to the club but wasn't going to be denied the chance to hear Jade, and Cat, sing if he could possibly help it.

"Oh," she looked a little embarrassed at his question and bit her lip nervously as she deliberated on how to answer him. Jade looked expectantly at her, seeing how she'd answer. "I guess you two are up next," she sighed in defeat.

"She wants a piece of you," the gothic girl muttered teasingly as the pair headed to the back of the stage.

"She can't have any of my _pieces_," he commented a little stiffly. Jade stifled a grin as the MC asked what they wanted to sing.

"Oh I have the _perfect_ song," she grinned, looking across at Tori. "Time for some Beyonce…"

"Alright everyone, please give it up for Jade and a Karaoke Dokie newcomer, Freddie," the MC encouraged the gathering. "They're going to be singing a bit of Beyonce tonight – _You're The Reason!_"

"WHAT?" Tori yelped; André looked a little annoyed at the description of the song too while Trina turned to her drink as the two looked at her.

"_I don't want to make a scene, I don't want to let you down,"_ Jade began.

Freddie gave a nervy glance to the screen and continued to face it as he chimed in, "_Trying to do my own thing and I'm starting to figure it out…_"

"_That it's alright, keep it together, wherever we go,_" Jade picked up.

"_And it's alright, oh well whatever, everybody needs to know…_" Freddie concluded the verse and the two began the chorus in unison.

"_You might be crazy, but have I told you lately_

_That I love you? You're the only reason that I'm not afraid to fly._

_And it's crazy that someone could change me,_

_Now no matter what it is I have to do I'm not afraid to try._

_And you need to know that you're the reason why…_"

Tori was drawn from her brooding about the song, Trina's ingratitude, what might have been had she been allowed to finish recording it and all the other feelings that hearing it had dredges up inside her to watch how the pair interacted, or at least behaved, during their duet; she noticed with surprise that Jade stole a number of glances towards the Seattleite during the song, usually from out of his Line of Sight and while he was checking the lyrics on the screen so that he couldn't see them, though the gothic girl did walk well into his personal space and look straight at him, and he at her, as they concluded the song with a final line of,

"_And you need to know that you're the reason why._"

The applause of the other teenagers in the club broke the trance that watching the singers had put her into; she joined in and clapped and cheered her friends as they, too, had their spell broken and turned away from one another to face the others in the room. Jade began to wave to the audience and Freddie followed her lead as the two left the stage and sat back down at their table. Freddie looked exhausted from his time as the centre of attention while Jade was enjoying the tail end of the familiar adrenaline-high she experienced whenever she performed.

"Nice going man," André complimented him.

"You were really good," Tori agreed, having reclaimed her seat next to him. Jade reluctantly returned to the other side of the table, leaving the brown-haired boy sandwiched between the sisters.

André sang next, followed by a "duet" by Robbie and Rex and one from Jade and Cat; the streak-haired girl was able to impress the crowds again, despite having sung earlier ("practise for my first major gig," she would later observe). Finally Trina got her turn, much to the annoyance and disappointment of the assembled teens. Being Trina she was shocked by their reaction, which she put down to jealousy on their part, and sat down to a smattering of limp applause (Freddie was one of the few who partook).

"You're clapping because it's over, right?" Jade shot across the table.

"I'm clapping because she's _my friend_," he fired back testily. The dark brunette bit her lip and chose to remain silent on the issue.

"Ok, that was the last act on the list tonight, so now you guys get to decide the winner by your own applause." He then proceeded to go through the list of acts; to her delight Tori was a narrow winner and accepted the congratulations of Freddie and the others. Jade looked a little sourly at her rival but was able to offer her own positive words to the lighter brunette.

With the night's entertainment over, activities at the club began to wind down. The gang finished their drinks and left together, agreeing that it had been a great night and a lot of fun.

"It was good hanging out with you," André told Freddie. "_Both_ of you," he turned to Jade who gave him a cautious smile of acknowledgement.

"Yeah, it was fun," agreed Tori. "Do you have plans for the rest of the weekend?" she asked the two.

Jade and Freddie looked at one another. "Uh no," he answered, "we haven't made any plans yet."

"Oh, well, if you want, give us a call in the morning and we'll go hang somewhere or show you some of the sights?"

"That'd be good," he smiled before gesturing to his hostess, "I'll let you know what we have in mind and we'll take it from there."

Jade drove them home in silence; Freddie's due to fatigue at the early start and long day, hers as she was lost in her own thoughts. She led him into the house when they arrived.

"So do you want to hang with them tomorrow?" she asked as they reached the kitchen. She walked to the fridge and retrieved a couple of drinks for them; her mother was not around and Jade assumed she had already gone to bed.

"I want to hang with _you_," he said with a touch of finality, "so whether we meet them or not is your call. I'll be happy either way."

"Why?" she asked, genuinely curious. "Why would you want to be around me instead of them if I said I didn't want to see them."

He paused, taking a couple of sips of soda while deliberating his answer. Finally, when her look became a little more intense, "You get it," he answered.

"Get what?" His brief reply had left her even more confused.

"I blew off school, I came down here because of my life; the people in it who I thought were 'friends' but it turns out weren't. _You_ never try to hide who you are and you're happy whether people accept you for you or not; if you _really_ didn't want me around you'd have let me know, you wouldn't have left school early, invited me to stay and all the other stuff you've done – you didn't _have_ to do any of it. I want to be around you because I always see the real you… and I like what I see," he finished with a casual shrug.

Jade bit her lip to keep the surprise from her face; she pondered his words briefly before deciding that she needed more time to process them.

"We'll meet up with them tomorrow. Goodnight Freddie," she told him crisply before heading upstairs.

"Goodnight Jade," he called softly after her as she left the kitchen. She paused briefly but didn't turn around before continuing her journey.


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: Hello again everyone and welcome to the next chapter of this little story. Thanks as always to you for reading and especially to Challenge King, Fanfic-Reader-88, Twilight Warrior 627 and Subject 87 for your reviews to the last chapter.  
**

* * *

_West Residence, Hollywood, Los Angeles_

_Saturday, May 12, 2012_

Freddie woke in a momentary panic as he opened his eyes in the unfamiliar surroundings. He sat up in the bed with a jolt and took a couple of calming breaths as he remembered where he was. The brown-haired teen smiled as he cast his mind back on the previous day – waking up and deciding on spec to just blow off school and fly to Los Angeles; _hell,_ he thought, _I didn't just skip a day I left the state_, spending a great afternoon with Jade and then catching up with the others later on in the evening. He lay back down and got himself comfortable again as the pleasant memories flooded through his mind and he thought about just how good the day had been, just how different _all_ of the Hollywood Arts gang had been in attitude towards him when compared to his former friends back up in Seattle. His mind settled on the raven-haired beauty whose bedroom was a few yards from the Guest Room where he currently lay. If someone had told him, even yesterday morning – or even as late as lunchtime while he was making his way across the Asphalt Café – that he would be spending a lot of time this weekend with one of the girls from that school and sleeping over at her house he would have picked Tori Vega. He and the half-Latina had felt a connection the previous summer and he had travelled down just to see the play she had put on and to see her; he had spent a good weekend with her and the recuperating Trina. She was the storybook nice girl for his nice guy so he would be lying if he said he had never wondered about what might have been had they met under different circumstances and lived a little nearer to one another.

A soft knock on the door drew him from his thoughts. "Hello?" he asked.

Jade peered cautiously around the door, becoming a little bolder when she noticed that he was still in bed and not in some state of undress. She smiled as she crossed the threshold, revealing that she was still in her pyjamas and leant against the frame of the door, arms folded across her chest.

"Hey Freddie," she greeted him brightly, "mom asked me to let you know breakfast will be about ten minutes if you want to take a shower first?"

He motioned to his armpits before smiling across at her. "You can tell from there that I need one?" he joked. She grinned before replying,

"Bathroom is across the hallway, use what you need to."

"Ok, I'll see you down there in a few minutes, thanks."

The gothic girl nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her. She rested against the wall opposite the door and closed her eyes, letting out a deep sigh as she steadied and composed herself. She pondered on perhaps needing a cold shower herself after seeing his bare arm and, judging by his visible (and rather firm-looking shoulder) what had appeared to be an equally unclothed upper body. She had to admit to herself that the sight led her mind to wander about what he was hiding under the bed sheets. She shook her head to try and clear it before heading downstairs and joining her mother in the kitchen.

"Are you ok?" the older West asked as she looked over her shoulder and saw the slightly perturbed look on her daughter's face.

"Huh? Oh yeah," she replied weakly before taking a seat and gazing off into space. She jumped slightly as her mother suddenly set a cup full of steaming coffee in front of her.

"Ok, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," the teenager insisted. She received a challenging stare from the matriarch of the house and finally relented.

"Ok, it's Freddie, I think he's good looking."

"So your eyes still work," Mrs West teased. In spite of herself Jade grinned back. "What's the problem with that?"

Jade took a sip of her coffee as she thought about the question; her mother continued to eye her intently as she waited for her answer. "No _problem_," she began slowly, "it seemed like we were bonding a little yesterday over lunch and having a good time…" she decided against mentioning to her mother that she had skipped her afternoon classes. "I just… I find myself wondering why he gives me a second look, why he wants to be around me when he knows Tori better and everyone prefers her to me. I…" she took a deep breath and whispered out her deepest feeling, "I'm scared to think that there might _be_ something because if I start to invest any emotion in it and he turns to her… it would be a whole new level of hurt for me."

"Have you talked to him at all about it?"

"I've tried telling him it's ok to spend his time with Tori or the others but he hasn't – yet."

"You push him, he pushes you back harder?" Mrs West grinned. Mother and daughter shared a laugh at the joke.

"Something like that," Jade conceded. "I just don't dare to believe it could happen I guess."

"Plus he lives in Seattle, you live here and… do you even know how he feels or whether he _wants _anything from you?" her mother guessed. "Sounds like you too need to talk before he leaves tomorrow," she observed when her daughter nodded.

"I guess so," the teenager agreed.

"But sweetie, you broke up with Beck a few weeks ago, you dated that boy last week but if you want to go for it then don't be afraid. Just be sure that it's what you want and be aware that it will be difficult with him living over a thousand miles away – at least until the summer," she hinted coyly.

One floor up, Freddie stood under a warm shower asking himself some rather similar questions. He had told her the truth the night before when he said that she gets it, that she's not afraid to be herself and he _definitely_ liked what he'd seen of her so far.

_What do I want?_ he paused midway through the act of lathering up as that question drilled itself into his mind. He found that he couldn't answer it with any degree of confidence right now; he wasn't sure, after the emotional roller-coaster of the last week, exactly what he was looking for right now. _What does she want? Would she even be interested?_ he wondered and mentally shrugged, resolving to cross those bridges if he reached them.

The former iCarly tech producer finished up and returned to his room, pulling a change of clothes from the bag he had brought. He dressed quickly and headed downstairs, greeting the two Wests when he reached the kitchen. They smiled happily at him as they welcomed him and the three shared a pleasant breakfast, exchanging small talk about schools and work until Mrs West asked about their plans for the day.

"Uh," Freddie began, looking to the gothic girl for an answer.

"I'm going to text Tori once I'm finished here and we're all going to meet up and show Freddie around LA," she smiled at her guest and he nodded happily.

"It should be a good day," he agreed.

True to her word Jade fired off a text to her rival before hitting the shower herself. The half-Latina had replied by the time she was done and she pulled on a black skirt and matching top, fixed her facial jewellery and added her purple hair extensions before heading back downstairs where she saw Freddie sat watching TV in the living area.

"Hey, you ready to go?" she asked. He looked up from the screen to meet her.

"Yeah, sure, ready when you are." He felt in his pocket for his wallet; it was the only thing he expected to need.

"Ok, let's go? We're not meeting the others for about half-an-hour but I want coffee."

Freddie gave her a curious look; she had just drunk two cups over breakfast and he knew there was still more in the pot in the kitchen. He didn't comment, though, simply standing up and letting her lead the way out to the garage and her car.

_Jet Brew_

_6801 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood, California_

Jade parked up as close as she could to the café and led her visitor inside. She waved at a girl a year or two older than herself who was stood behind the counter and the other began to prepare a drink for her.

"She knows you," Freddie observed with a laugh.

"I like my coffee," she retorted. "One of the perks of being a regular."

Freddie chuckled. "Perks…" he laughed, causing Jade to roll her eyes and shake her head at the unintended joke. The boy took a seat at a vacant table and Jade headed for the counter.

"You want one?" she asked over her shoulder.

"I'm good thanks."

She shrugged and returned with her drink a few moments later, smiling as she took a long draught from the cup.

"Good?" he asked with a playful smirk.

"_So_ good," she confirmed.

"Which is why you're buying coffee here rather than just having another cup from your kitchen?" he queried.

She nodded. "Plus it's nice to get out of the house for a while." Jade debated whether to broach the main issue with him bit decided to wait; she would see how the day went and make a decision either this evening or tomorrow before he left… _before he left_. "Not that I'm trying to get rid of you but what time is your flight back tomorrow?" she asked casually.

"Uh," he closed his eyes and thought for a moment, "eight twenty-five in the evening, gets into Seattle just after eleven."

"Quite a late end to the day for you then," the dark haired girl commented.

"It makes it easier to avoid Carly and Sam that way," the Seattle native shrugged.

"What are you going to do over the summer then to avoid them?" she enquired. "Just head out all day every day?"

"Well I've got a job at the Pear Store so I'll do as many shifts as I can, and I'm in a few clubs that they have nothing to do with so I'm sure I can fill my days."

"Oh, because I was thinking…" she took a steadying breath, "that if you wanted, or needed, to come back for a while then I'm sure mom would let you stay again."

"I'd like that," the brown-haired teen's voice was sincere as he looked into the girl's blue-green eyes. "If it's an offer then I'll _definitely_ be back over the summer."

"And beyond that? Have you thought about colleges or anything?" Jade kept her curious tone and took another mouthful of coffee.

"I've looked at a few. UW was the obvious choice before things fell apart with… everyone. I also looked at some on the East Coast – Harvard, Yale, MIT. Some of my mom's family live near Boston so I'd be close to some people I know."

"How about LA? We have some good schools here," the purple-streak haired girl kept her tone light, almost to the point of implying that she was mildly affronted that he had not considered her home city as a viable option, with the questioning as she tried to hide the fact that she was looking to gauge some reaction from him.

"I considered UCLA and USC," he disclosed. "Having met you guys last summer I figured if I came here there'd maybe be some people I know at the same school so, again, they're options that I have."

"So you haven't decided yet on a school?"

"I'm leaning towards Harvard right now; y'know Ivy League and all that."

Jade nodded. "I think most of us go on to UCLA unless we're already fixed up with contracts and deals, like André; he has a recording contract already."

"I'm not surprised; he's an immensely talented musician. I can see the companies fighting over him to get him signed up. What about you? Do you have anything fixed up yet?"

"No. I really want to be an actress; that's my dream. Singing wouldn't be a bad second prize I guess."

"It's great that you're gifted enough to consider both as options. Y'know," he smirked, "they shoot a lot of stuff in Vancouver these days. UW wouldn't be _that_ bad an option for you to be close to it all."

The singer-actress smirked at the thought, along with the irony that she could move to Seattle at the same time as he left the city. Before she could answer her phone beeped to announce that she'd received a text message.

"It's Tori," she announced. "They're waiting for us at the Green Meadow Mall."

They stood up; Jade drained her cup and dropped it in the trash as they left the café and got back in her car.

* * *

_Green Meadow Mall_

_6360 Sunset Blvd, Hollywood, California_

Jade found a spot in the parking lot and the teenage pair made their way inside the mall. Cat was the first person to spot them and she waved happily as she called "Hi" in a loud voice towards them, turning the heads of many of the shoppers in their direction. The raven-haired beauty found herself wishing that the ground would open up and swallow her at the attention her child-like friend had sent their way so she was surprised to see Freddie smiling broadly and waving at the cupcake-obsessed teenager.

"Don't encourage her," she growled out of the corner of her mouth.

"She's happy to see us. No Beck again?" The two of them scanned the group and noted the long-haired Canadian's absence.

"No, he declined our invite," Tori confirmed when Freddie put the question to her; also present, along with her and Cat, were Trina, André and Robbie; Rex was surprisingly absent, much to Freddie's relief.

"Oh well," Jade shrugged dismissively; she wasn't in any particular hurry to reconcile, friends or otherwise, with her ex-boyfriend.

"So where are you taking me today?" Freddie asked, eager to change the subject away from the bone of contention between the group of friends.

"Well, we thought we'd start with Hollywood Boulevard," Tori proposed, "y'know, you can see the stars and handprints."

"Like a proper tourist?" he laughed. "Sounds like a good starting point."

"_And_, since were in the area," the half-Latina singer-actress continued, "there's a couple of museums there like Ripley's Believe it or Not."

"That sounds like my sort of place," he agreed.

"Speaking of your kind of place," Jade interjected, "Griffith Observatory is only like, fifteen minutes away from there so we could drive there after?"

"You guys are going to spoil me, aren't you?" he smiled at the group, all of whom were smiling back at him.

"That's the plan," Jade moved slightly closer to him so that her arm brushed against his. The Vega sisters both eyed the interplay uneasily. They didn't look at one another, otherwise they may each have seen the jealousy simmering in the other's eyes. Jade, of course, did notice the brief flash before the girls (Tori especially) swallowed it down. As Freddie had turned to face the dark haired girl as she spoke, he did not see the sisters' reactions.

"Anything here you want to check out before we move on?" André asked their guest.

"Sure, we can check out a few stores before we go," the former iCarly shrugged.

The teenagers spent around half an hour at the mall since, as Freddie had spent the previous morning downtown, there wasn't too much that he wanted to look at. They left the building; Trina would drive herself and her sister while André was giving a ride to Cat and Robbie. Jade, of course, took Freddie in her car and the convoy made its way to the middle of "touristy" Hollywood, parked up and followed some of the Walk of Fame. They left Freddie to set the pace and he paid special attention to the prints of some of the stars of his favourite movies.

"Ok, I'm done," he declared after a while. "Ripley's?" he asked Jade, who nodded and touched a hand to his back, guiding him on the walk there; again the boy was oblivious to the looks this garnered from two of the group. His mind did, however, register the attention he was getting from his hostess. He found that it added to his churning feelings about the way things were going for him right now.

"Any of the other museums while we're here?" Cat piped up as they left Ripley's.

"Waxworks? Nah, not really my thing."

"'kay 'kay, let's go to the observatory then!" the red-head was surprisingly excited about the prospect. The others looked at one another and headed back to their cars.

Freddie thoroughly enjoyed this part of the day, despite Trina hovering by his shoulder the whole time and Tori trying to drag her away from him. He ignored their interplay and remained oblivious to Jade's scowls that she directed at them. Instead he fielded questions, from Cat and Robbie in particular, about some of the exhibits and shows so that pair also enjoyed the trip.

As the time was shortly after one p.m. when they left the Observatory the teenagers decided to have a lunch break; they took Freddie to their favourite restaurant, Nozu. The Seattleite was rather unsure about the idea of eating raw fish and, in truth, didn't particularly enjoy his meal, though he felt the company more than made up for it.

_Universal__Studios__Hollywood_

_100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, CA, United States_

After lunch they headed west of Griffith Park and spent a few hours in the Universal Studios theme park; Freddie listened to his friends' dreams of stardom while they traversed the area and didn't doubt that they had the talent to succeed.

After seeing everything they wanted to in the park, the gang headed for the car park around 7:30.

"So now what?" Jade asked the others brusquely.

"I think that's up to Freddie," André pointed out, turning all eyes to the Seattle native.

"Uh, it's been a long day – a _fun_ day but a long one – so I'm not sure I want to do too much more today really. Did your mom say anything about dinner?" He, of course, addressed the last question to Jade.

"I'll ask her." She pulled out her phone and tapped off a quick text while Trina tried to interest the boy in conversation. He answered politely but tried to ignore the older girl's obvious interest and flirting, something that became more difficult when Tori attempted to join in, much to André's amusement as he watched the two sisters in action.

Fortunately he was saved from having to involve himself in their plans by Jade receiving a reply. He turned to the girl expectantly.

"She says she can have something just about ready by the time we get back."

"Well in that case…" he sighed a little theatrically, "maybe we should head back?" He turned to the others, who all looked a little disappointed. "I'm here until tomorrow night so maybe we can do something tomorrow?"

There were murmurs of agreement and pledges to see one another tomorrow before the teens got into their respective cars and made the short drives back to their homes.

"Are you _really_ tired?" Jade asked him as they neared her home, shooting him a look.

"A little," he admitted, "I'm still recovering after yesterday's early start and late finish but also I uh…" he bit his tongue and stared out of the side window.

"You uh..?" she prompted, shooting him a quick glance before returning her attention to the road.

"I wanted to spend a little time with you," he dropped his voice to a whisper. He glanced at her, noted her impassive expression and his face fell a little.

"Really?" she asked after a few seconds of pregnant silence.

"Yeah, it's been fun hanging with the others but I'd like to have another chance to just hang and _talk_ with you."

"What about?" The mean girl felt an unusual flutter of her heart at what she thought he _may _be hinting.

"Uh, y'know, you asked about my plans… for the summer and beyond," he began awkwardly, "so I was wondering what _you_ had planned."

"Oh," she masked her disappointment by putting on a look that blended surprise and thought. "Well I guess over the summer I was going to circulate my resumé and try and get my foot in the door for a couple of studios, maybe do some work as an extra and get my face known."

"That makes sense – but you'll need to take a few days off when I come back down here," he cast a side-along glance and smile at the comment.

"You're definitely coming then?" Jade didn't need to act surprised this time.

"I'd like to if the offer's still there."

"Oh it's definitely there, and I'm sure there'll be others…" the raven-haired beauty left the sentence hanging as she turned into the driveway and pulled the car into the garage.

Freddie didn't get a chance to explore her last statement further as the girl got out of the car. Instead he followed her into the main house and greeted his hostess politely as she welcomed them.

Dinner was a simple but pleasant affair as Mrs West had cooked some chicken thighs and rice along with a few vegetables for them. Having had little of the sushi at lunch the Los Angeles visitor realised how hungry he was and tucked in eagerly, much to the West women's amusement.

"Did you kids have a good day?" the house matriarch asked as she finished her own meal.

"We did, yes," her daughter supplied. "We showed Freddie some of the sights here in Hollywood – and the observatory, then headed to Universal Studios."

"Did you see everything you wanted to?" The elder West directed this question to their guest; he looked up from his plate to meet her eyes.

"I think so. Walk of fame, Ripley's Believe it or Not…" he turned to his friend, "maybe in the morning we could go back there and look at a couple of the celebrity houses?"

Jade resisted the temptation to roll her eyes at his suggestion. Instead she forced her face into a cross between a grimace and a smile and just answered, "Sure."

Jade's mother didn't linger after dinner, simply announcing that she'd "leave the kids to it," and wishing them goodnight with a knowing smile directed at her daughter. Once she had gone the pair retired to the couch in the living area; Freddie decided to revisit the conversation from earlier.

"Jade," he attracted the gothic girl's attention; she turned to him with a curious, rather than impatient, look. As they were sat close together her knees gently nudged his upper leg. "What did you mean by 'other offers'?"

"You _really_ haven't noticed?" she asked in disbelief. "Vega and the talentless one were falling over themselves to flirt with you. You can have your pick of sisters over the summer if you want to stay there instead; you could have done tonight…"

Freddie remained silent at her observation; he really wasn't sure that he wanted to go down that road. Jade, however, pressed the issue.

"You came to visit Tori when she put her play on so I assume you like her on some level. She obviously likes you so why are you here?"

The boy sighed and leaned back on the couch; his musings from the morning came back to the forefront of his mind as he pondered the girl's question.

"Yes I found – find… whatever – Tori attractive," he conceded in slow and even tones, ignoring his hostess's narrowing eyes and freshly furrowing brow, "and yes, Trina's very pretty as well but… one, who says I'm looking for a relationship?"

Jade opened her mouth but closed it quickly; she gave him another surprised look and involuntarily leaned closer to him.

"And two, they're not the only pretty girls I was around today," he gave her a boyish smile as he met her eyes. "_If_ I was looking for something I'd want more than just looks and, like I said last night, you _get it_, I'm not sure that they do; I guess I'd find that out."

"So you're _not_ interested in Tori?" the girl pressed.

"She's a friend, a _good_ friend, but that's it."

Jade nodded in relief at his words. She bit her lip nervously and pushed on, "So why the _if_ you were looking? Why not just look?"

The Seattle-born paused for a moment. "This last week – since the party – has just been so draining emotionally, with what I've had to do, what I've decided, Carly chasing me round and round Ridgeway wanting to talk and convince me that I should give her another chance… I just don't know that I have…" He made the mistake of looking into her eyes as she focussed hers on him anew; immediately he lost his train of thought as he took in her visage again, "that I…" he repeated, as if in a trance, "that…"

His words were lost as he leaned forward, gently gripping Jade's forearms as she reciprocated his movement. Both rotated their heads clockwise a few degrees as they moved ever closer to one another before their lips met. As Jade began to lose herself in the moment the last presence of her mind urged her to move closer; she slid onto his lap and moved her hands to his sides; he released her arms and his hands found their way behind her back.

* * *

**AN: Thanks for reading; I'm going to leave it there for now but hope to have the next chapter up in the next few days. It may well be the last one if this story only covers their weekend, I'm not certain yet. Don't be shy about letting me know what you thought of it through the review box and I hope you all come back for the next instalment. PD**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: Hello everyone and welcome to the latest and (for now) final instalment of this story. I hope you are all well and have enjoyed the story so far. Many thanks as always to those who read and reviewed last time, EnchantingNightmares – I like that song too, it's one of the better ones.**

**OneHorseShay – yes, if the universe rooted for Freddie he'd be fighting the girls off, like Webicon really (oh, and Nora). As for Beck, well he's been avoiding Jade so will he show up? We'll see.**

**Challenge King – thank you and remember, there are none so blind as those who refuse to see.**

**Twilight Warrior 627 – thank you for your kind words. This story will likely just be the snapshot of the weekend but there is scope for continuation if people really want it.**

**Fanfic-Reader-88 – thanks. As above, maybe we'll get more of their later relationship at some point.**

**Jeremy Shane – here is some more.**

**Irishfan62 – you may be right that any future exploration would be another story, or I could just continue this one a couple of months later. It's all a little up in the air for now.**

**And now, please enjoy the rest of this story – or at least this part of it.**

* * *

Jade closed her eyes as she relaxed and enjoyed the feeling of Freddie's lips against her own; she felt herself sliding along his lap as his strong arms, still locked behind her back, pulled her closer to him. She felt the urge to deepen the kiss and her tongue poked out of her mouth where it met his; she grinned mentally at the thought that they had the sort of connection that meant they were even in sync for _this_.

Suddenly, however, after a few enjoyable moments of playfully battling for dominance over the kiss, the girl found the rational part of her mind kicking in again just as she felt the urge to slide her hands down his sides and to the hem of his shirt. Despite the wonderful feeling of their dancing tongues, she reluctantly pulled her head away from his, opening her eyes and feeling a deep pang of regret at the look of surprise, confusion and hurt in his eyes. She put on a downcast expression of her own but maintained her hold on his sides, even as his arms slackened their grip on her.

She made the mistake of looking into his brown eyes and began to lose herself anew, having to fight the desire to just resume kissing him. She looked down, desperate to be looking _anywhere_ but into the boy's eyes and took a calming breath.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "I just…" She chanced a look at him; his gaze had softened to one of concerned curiosity, though the hurt was still etched in his eyes, "I want to figure out what we _are_. I'm not looking for a fling or… or a one-night stand." She grew in confidence and her self-assured smile returned as she concluded, "I've no interest in that; I'm not that kind of girl."

He nodded as he leaned back against the couch, letting out a tired breath of his own. "I don't want that either and I'd never try to pressure you into anything like that," he insisted vehemently. "I don't know what we are," he shrugged, "I don't know what you want; hell I don't even know what _I_ want, but right here, right now, I like being here with you – and you're a great kisser," he finished with a boyish smile.

The gothic girl's own smile widened at his words and, especially, his compliment. She leaned back in and claimed his lips again, pressing hers softly against his before pulling away.

"You kiss pretty well yourself Freddie Benson," she whispered mischievously before moving back in for another sample, confident that they would both be able to control themselves and prevent things from going too far. The boy firmed his hold behind her back and pulled her towards him as he began to lean; their momentum meant that he quickly found his action having its desired result; he was flat on his back with the raven-haired girl on top of him.

If Jade was surprised by this turn of events she didn't show it at all, adapting to the situation and enjoying the position she was in. She gently sucked his bottom lip into her mouth and gently teased it with her teeth, eliciting a slight shudder from the boy beneath her. She grinned wickedly and began to redouble her efforts, only to be disturbed when her mother returned to the living area.

"Is everything ok, I heard noises – oh…" Mrs West cleared her throat in embarrassment as her daughter practically jumped off Freddie and landed on her back on the floor with a most uncharacteristic yelp. "I – uh… I see you two are _deciding_ things," the matriarch muttered. She turned on her heel and returned to her room, leaving the two teens grinning guiltily at one another for a moment before each looked away in discomfort and embarrassment.

"Deciding?" Freddie asked curiously; Jade turned to meet his look as she propped herself up on her right arm. The Seattleite swung his legs off the couch and stood up, offering a hand to help her up, which she accepted. Unfortunately this brought them back into very close proximity and the Angelino girl took a quick step backwards.

"We talked this morning," she admitted in a low voice, gesturing that he should take a seat. He complied and she turned and walked to one of the nearby arm chairs, sat in it and turned towards him; he eyed her expectantly. "Some of the stuff you've said about me – I guess I feel the same sort of thing," she continued, "but then I ask myself why you'd look at me rather than Tori, which you've tried to answer all weekend, and then there's the whole 'you live in Seattle' thing…"

"Which is why you asked about my plans for summer and college?" the boy surmised; the gothic girl nodded, sweeping her purple hair extension to one side.

"Like I just said – I'm not a fling or a one-night-stand girl, so I want to figure out what's going on, and… and what the likelihood is of it continuing, before I commit or… or emotionally invest in something." The girl had laid all her cards on the table for him, something she was certainly not used to doing, and gazed intently at him to gauge his response.

Freddie cradled his hands in his lap and studied his laced fingers for a few moments. He nodded slowly as he processed her words. "I can't make you any promises about the future but…" he lifted his head to look across at her, "I _would_ like to see if there's anything between us and I think that maybe there could be. I'd love to come back here over the summer and spend time with you. _Maybe_ if we think that there is then we can look at colleges together. Right now? My head's still reeling from the last week or so but by the summer hopefully things would be better. For tonight? Nothing has to happen that we don't want to; we can head to our rooms now and say goodnight – or we can make out a little longer?" He gave her a humorous smile, one that she returned with interest before rising from the chair and joining him again on the couch; Jade pushed him gently to steer him back into a lying position on the couch and took a position on top of him again as she sought his lips.

Around half-an-hour later Jade reluctantly eased herself off the boy. "I uh…" she jerked her thumb down the hallway. "Nature's calling," she admitted, a crimson tinge adorning her usually pale features. "Stop it," she chided as Freddie began to shake a little as he attempted to suppress his giggles. He covered his mouth with his hand but the laughter brimmed in his eyes.

She returned a few moments later, glancing at the clock as she did. "I guess we should get some sleep," she whispered. He nodded, offering her his hand, which she took. They made their way quietly up the stairs and reached his bedroom doorway. He stood on the threshold but the girl didn't release his hand.

"So goodnight?" he asked in a low voice, leaning in to kiss her again. She returned it readily and lingered against his lips a fraction longer when he pulled away, standing there with eyes closed and maintaining pressure on his hand.

The raven-haired girl bit her lip nervously as her eyes darted from him to the made-up bed behind him. Her nerve failed her and she avoided looking at him again; instead she whispered "Goodnight" to his chest before dropping his hand and turning to head down the hallway to her own room.

The Seattle native sighed quietly as he watched her go; he pinched the bridge of his nose as he turned to enter the room, closing the door softly behind him and padding over to the bed, changing into his sleepwear before sliding under the sheets and closing his eyes, the streak-haired girl filling his mind's eye as he tried to get comfortable.

The mean girl closed her bedroom door and leaned against it, closing her eyes and letting out a deep sigh of frustration. She shook her head as she attempted to clear some of the thoughts from it and glanced in the direction of his room. She ran her hand through her hair before walking to the dressing table, taking a seat in front of the mirror and removing her hair extensions and facial jewellery. With her head once again returned to its natural appearance she rested her elbows on the table and cupped her hands, resting her chin on them as she stared into the mirror and attempting to find a direct line to her soul as she wondered about everything that was racing through her mind and body at the moment, about how close she had come to following Freddie into the guest room, how much she was having to stop herself from heading back there. She wondered what it was about the boy that made it such an appealing prospect, especially when she had never gone that far with Beck during their relationships. _Something_ about the Washington-based boy appealed to her in a way that neither Beck nor any other guy ever had and something told her that he was genuine in what he had said about them. Then there was the physical aspect; she had enjoyed their make-out session immensely and found herself wondering how much better he could make her feel if she gave him the chance. She stood and looked at her own bed, then to the door before turning back to the bed with a slump of her shoulders as her nerve failed.

On the other side of the door a nervous looking Freddie Benson stood with his hand raised, balled into a fist. He took a breath before dropping his arm back to his sad. He turned sadly and returned to the guest room.

_Sunday, May 13__th__ 2012._

Jade was roused from her slumber by the morning light was streaming through the curtained window. She propped herself up by her right elbow, resting on it for a moment before rolling onto her back and closing her eyes again as she thought back on the previous night; she had enjoyed the evening with Freddie and the others but after returning home… she thought on what she and the Seattle boy had shared, what they had _almost_ shared, maybe, if she'd been a little braver and a little more _willing_. She figured that there was no point now in reflecting on what might have been. Was she glad it hadn't happened or disappointed that she had lacked the bravery to make a move? She struggled out of bed, no longer able to enjoy a relaxing Sunday morning lie-in. Instead she made her way to the dresser and brushed her hair. She eyed her hair extensions and facial jewellery but something stayed her hand; instead she decided to do this looking as natural as she could.

Freddie was coming around after a restful sleep. It had taken him a while to get off to sleep after his abortive trip to Jade's room; he had tossed and turned early on in the night as he tried to quell the part of him that wished he had knocked on her door. The gentleman in him, however, over-rode that part by recalling that she had left him alone to go to her own room – _that meant no_ he told himself sternly. So sleep had been easy to come by but he felt a pang of regret that the night, the last night he'd be near her for a while, had ended with them apart. A soft knock on his door surprised him.

"It's open," he called quietly and smiled as Jade stuck her head around after opening it. "Hey," he greeted her warmly, smiling at the atypically shy expression on the girl's face.

"Hi," she whispered, rocking nervously on her feet in the doorway. "Can I come in?" she asked cautiously.

"Of course," he was surprised by the request and more surprised when the girl smartly crossed the room and slipped under the bedclothes with him; it wasn't a _cold_ morning but would certainly be warmer in the bed. "Uh… hey?"

She smiled, trying to cover her nervousness with false bravado. Bereft of profound pronouncements to make she simply leaned in and gave him a soft peck on the lips, smiling against his mouth as his muscular left arm snaked around her back. He shifted his weight a little and Jade found herself rolled onto her back with the boy on top of her.

His mouth moved to the exposed skin at the base of her neck and began to kiss it gently. He unveiled a little more flesh by moving the neck of her pyjama top slightly aside and sent a shiver through her body by kissing along the top of her arm towards her shoulder. Her arms acted of their own accord as they ducked under his T-shirt and began kneading his back as he kissed his way back to and up her neck, to her cheek, forehead, nose and finally lips.

"Freddie," she firmed her voice as he paused in his efforts. He lifted his head to look at her and she wriggled from underneath him. "Last night I… I almost came back," her voice dropped in volume.

Just outside the still partly-open door Mrs West was walking past when she heard her daughter's voice, something that surprised her. She listened intently, well aware that she was eavesdropping on their private conversation but the matriarch decided that her parental concern outweighed anything else right now.

"I almost knocked on your door," he admitted.

"If you had, I would have…" she swallowed, "let you in. But – I guess I'm glad that you didn't; it means nothing complicated last night for us. We decided to try and figure it out and we can do that this summer without the added complications – well, not yet anyway," she concluded with a mischievous smile.

"What we _did_ share last night – emotionally if nothing else," he rationalised, "was special and meant a lot to me. I mean it Jade, I've felt a real _connection_ to you and I'm happy with that. Sex? Well," he sighed and her interest piqued as he mentioned the word, "it would have made the night even more special and magical but you're right. We need to figure out what we have and what we want before we take that step."

Outside the door Mrs West smiled at the couple's comments and marvelled at the maturity they were displaying, rather than giving into the temptations that she knew were obviously there having observed them a little over the weekend and spoken with her daughter. She crept past the teens unseen and headed downstairs to make a start on breakfast.

Freddie clambered out of the bed and walked around the other side of it, offering his hand to the gothic girl. She smiled as she took it and allowed him to help her to her feet. To his slight surprise she kept her hand in his as they left the room and made their way downstairs. He gave her a slightly nervous look as they approached the kitchen area, wondering what her mother would make of them appearing hand-in-hand first thing in the morning. She nodded and reluctantly released him before leading the way into the kitchen.

"Hey mom, is the coffee ready?" she asked, giving the matriarch a good morning kiss on her cheek.

"You know it is," Mrs West laughed. "Did you both sleep well?"

The teens both nodded their confirmation as Jade helped herself to a cup of coffee before pouring a second one and handing it to Freddie. The three traded small talk over breakfast before Jade's mother turned to the question of their plans for the day.

"What are you going to be doing? Will you see the others today? What time do you need to be at the airport?"

"Uh… my flight isn't until this evening so probably aim to be at the airport for around seven-thirty. Until then I'm not sure really; we don't have any firm plans so we'll just see where the day takes us."

Jade nodded her agreement as she spoke up, "I thought we might spend the day a bit further afield than Hollywood, maybe head into Downtown LA for a while?"

"Sounds good," Freddie agreed.

"Will the others be joining you today?"

The two glanced at one another; Jade shrugged to indicate that it was Freddie's decision.

"I was thinking it would just be the two of us today," the brown-eyed teen responded. "We could call the others later and they can meet us at the airport so I can say goodbye to them," he proposed.

The raven-haired girl nodded over her coffee mug; it sounded like an excellent idea to her, spending the day alone with the boy, _my boy?_ she wondered to herself. _Is he mine now, what exactly_ are_ we? I guess that's what we'll figure out going forwards from here_. "Huh?" she turned to her mother, realising that she had just missed whatever the elder West had said to her. The matriarch chuckled as she responded,

"I was asking whether you had any specific places in mind to see."

"Well I know Freddie likes his model trains," she began, trying in vain to keep the tedium out of her voice, something that drew a grin from the boy sat next to her at the table, "so I thought he might like a trip to Union Station. The Historical Monument has some touristy stuff in the area so I'll take the tourist there," she playfully nudged his right arm with her left hand, "and, for my dreams, we have to take a look at the Performing Arts Center." Her mother nodded as she turned to the Seattleite, "I always like to go there when I'm downtown; I look around it and imagine myself on stage there. It reminds me of what my goals are for my career."

Freddie nodded, appreciating this little bit of insight and a glimpse at the girl's determination. He could understand it as he felt the same way about his own aims and goals; he would spend hours over making sure his camera set-up, lighting and everything was _perfect _for the web show (_well, not anymore_, he noted) and, with his dreams of working in the electronics industry, maybe as an engineer for Pear or some similar company, any time he worked on repairing his old computers or fixing old devices by mending circuit boards, he was an absolute perfectionist. _Hell,_ he smirked, bringing a curious look from Jade, _I'm even a perfectionist when it comes to preparing a pizza_.

"I get it," he nodded at her, "keep your dream in your mind and it will help you stay focussed on those difficult days when you really don't want to know."

After breakfast the pair got themselves ready for their day out. Jade fielded a couple of calls from Tori, asking whether they had any plans, and tried to answer as vaguely as she could without outright lying to her rival. Instead she explained that they were heading into the city but would see her and the others before Freddie left. Tori was disappointed by the response, and her unsuccessful attempts to ferret any more information from the gothic girl, but she reluctantly had to accept that the information would not be forthcoming and drop the matter. She considered calling Freddie and asking _him_ what they were doing, however when she tried she simply reached his voicemail; the boy had lost count of the number of voicemails, texts and missed calls from Carly when he had switched his phone on at various points over the weekend (he wanted to make sure nothing serious had happened in his absence and so he checked in with his mother a couple of times, rolling his eyes at her over-protective manner and questioning of him and again when his inbox and voicemail filled up with Carly's number). He spent a surprisingly satisfying few minutes on each occasion clearing the messages unread and unheard before turning his phone off again before she could try to contact him again. One thing his mother had told him was that she had not given away his location to the girls, simply saying that he had gone away for a couple of days but should be back before Monday; he was grateful for her discretion – and the fact that she was even less of a fan of Carly than he was at the moment. He knew he would have to deal with an irate brunette either tonight or in the morning, at school even if he avoided her until then, but just wanted to enjoy the rest of his weekend with the beautiful girl who had become his… _something_.

All too quickly morning turned into afternoon; the duo found a nice café for a light lunch and some coffee for Jade. They were able to find a private table for two in the corner of the place, the neighbouring tables were empty; Freddie was glad of this as it gave them a chance to talk.

"Thanks for this morning; I know you really didn't enjoy the station and the trains."

She smiled. "You bought me a coffee after so it was worth it."

He chuckled at her comment and set his sandwich down for a moment. "It's been great, just being here with you today. Don't get me wrong I like the others –"

"I don't," she half-joked, earning a shake of the head and roll of the eyes from him.

"_But_, being with you, trying to figure out what we are… it's been a good weekend."

"Do you think we'll have an answer this weekend?" she asked, her tone was curious as she tried to disguise the nervousness she felt.

"Do you?" He shook his head a little regretfully. "I don't want to rush into it, one reason I guess I'm kinda glad we didn't _go further_ last night," she smiled slightly as she bowed her head to suppress the blush forming on her pale skin as she thought back on the previous evening. "I do want to know what we could be but I can't jump into something right now. I'll be back over the summer but I don't think I can give an answer today."

She nodded. "I can wait until summer," she reassured him.

* * *

They spent a few more hours seeing some of the sights of downtown LA before Tori called again, wanting to know what time they would be at the airport.

"About seven-thirty," she replied, having put the girl on speaker.

"It's nearly that now," the half-Latina pointed out.

"Oh chizz!" they cried in stereo, having totally lost track of time as they enjoyed their afternoon. The two raced to Jade's car and sped to the airport, arriving a little after seven forty-five.

Freddie presented his ticket and received his boarding card; he would have to head through security in a couple of minutes. Jade found the others and they met by the screening area.

"So, I guess this is goodbye for now," he said to the Hollywood Arts students. "It was good to see you Tori," he hugged the girl, who wrapped her arms tightly around him, earning a scowl from Jade. "Trina," he hugged her in turn when the younger Vega released him; the older girl was even more forceful than her sister when it came to hugging him. "Cat," he smiled. The red-head bounced into his arms and gave him an innocent peck on the cheek. Jade found herself less bothered about this, knowing that it's a part of who her friend is.

The boy shook hands with André and Robbie, noting again that Beck was conspicuous by his absence as he had been all weekend. He shrugged off this detail and turned his attention to the last member of the group, the girl he had bonded with over the last fifty or so hours to a degree he couldn't have imagined was possible. The two smiled at one another and took a couple of steps to the side, giving themselves a little privacy from the others. The two Vegas, Trina especially, looked on enviously at how at ease the two seemed and especially with what was to ensue.

"Well I guess there's not much to say for now…" Jade noted.

"Except for goodbye, we'll talk soon and I can't wait for summer," he smiled at her, forcing his eyes to stay dry.

"Until the summer then," she whispered, pulling him into a hug and giving him a lingering kiss.

"Goodbye for now Jade," he smiled as they parted.

"See you soon Freddie."

He gave one last look back at the girl, stood slightly apart from her friends, and waved before joining the line for the scanners so he could make his flight. _I'll be back soon_, he silently promised her, and himself.

* * *

**AN: Ok that's it for this story, at least for now. I have had requests for it to continue so we'll see if I do pick it up with their exploits over the summer. No promises but hopefully, depending on my other writing commitments. Until then thank you for reading, for all of you who reviewed (please review this chapter and let me know what you thought) so Irishfan62, Jeremy Shane, Fanfic-Reader-88, Twilight Warrior 627, Challenge King, OneHorseShay, EnchantingNightmares, Subject87 and ShadowFires51 – thank you for your support and feedback.**


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